How the runners up fared
When Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa finished second in Heisman Trophy voting last December, he joined an elite group of players who just missed out on winning the most prestigious individual award in sports.
With his return in 2019, the Crimson Tide quarterback is now part of a small but accomplished group of Heisman runners up who came back to compete for the trophy later in their careers.
Prior to Tagovailoa, only 17 runners up in Heisman history returned to play more seasons of college football. Just four of them went on to win the Heisman in their own right.
Here is a list of those players and how they finished in those years:
| Name, School | Runner Up Year | Following Year Finish |
| Bryce Love, Stanford | 2017 | Did not place |
| Christian McCaffrey, Stanford | 2015 | 9th |
| Andrew Luck, Stanford | 2010 | 2nd |
| Colt McCoy, Texas | 2008 | 3rd |
| Darren McFadden, Arkansas | 2006 | 2nd |
| Adrian Peterson, Oklahoma | 2004 | Did not place |
| Rex Grossman, Florida | 2001 | Did not place |
| Marshall Faulk, San Diego State | 1992 | 4th |
| Keith Byars, Ohio State | 1984 | Did not place |
| Herschel Walker, Georgia | 1981 | Won the Heisman |
| O.J. Simpson, USC | 1967 | Won the Heisman |
| Jim Swink, TCU | 1955 | Did not place |
| Charlie Justice, North Carolina | 1948 | 2nd |
| Glenn Davis, Army | 1945 | Won the Heisman |
| Glenn Davis, Army | 1944 | 2nd |
| Angelo Bertelli, Notre Dame | 1941 | 6th |
| Tom Harmon, Michigan | 1939 | Won the Heisman |
Herschel Walker is the last Heisman runner up to go on to win the Heisman, with O.J. Simpson, Glenn Davis and Tom Harmon also accomplishing the feat.
